In this article Jeff McCracken-Hewson examines the growing disillusionment in western democratic countries with what he describes as ‘the myth of democracy’, through a critical examination of four recent books that look at democracy and its present challenges. Jeff is on the executive committee of the Victorian Fabians and has a longstanding connection with the Australian Labor movement. He is also a member of the UK Labour Party and currently divides his time between Australia and the UK.
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The Australian Fabians are looking for a new Editor with a commitment to our Fabians aims.
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Jeff McCracken-Hewson reflects on his own experience of the democratic reform process in the UK Labour Party and the rise of Jeremy Corbyn. This is in part a response to Mark Butler's address on the need for 'Democratisation of the ALP' at our event in January, in which Mark drew comparisons with UK Labour. Jeff joined the executive of Victorian Fabians earlier this year. He is a member of the UK Labour Party and has a longstanding connection with the Australian Labor movement. He currently divides his time between Australia and the UK.
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I think we need the Fabians to advocate for the social policies that are missing from current party agendas. We need influence options that recognise that we are citizens, wanting a social contract, not customers looking for a bargain, in societies not economies. Hopefully, we can reduce the trust deficit by letting voters see their political representatives as creating more civil societies.
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Author: Mark Butler is ALP National President and the Shadow Minister for Climate Change and Energy
On Monday 22 January, Mark spoke to more than 200 people in Melbourne about the key unresolved issue of internal Labor democracy. The event was hosted by the Victorian Fabians, the John Cain Foundation, Open Labor and ALP Independents Group. Mark's speech appears below. We have included links to follow-up articles about the event and also a link to the speech on Fabians TV.
Paul Bongiorno's political analysis on Fran Kelly's Breakfast program here. It begins at the two minute mark.
The Guardian.
The Australian.
The Sydney Morning Herald.
Twitter.
Challenge magazine.
Fabians TV
Mark's speech.
Question and Answer session.
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Join us live from our recent event Tax Settings and Inequality in Melbourne with Andrew Giles MP and Terri Buttler MP.
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The 2017 WA state election was a serious defeat for conservative parties in what has previously been one of their richest strongholds. Labor's electoral victory was the largest in WA history. Why was this success so great? This presentation, by two of the most credible analysts in WA, breaks down voting patterns and presents the findings of focus group and other qualitative research.
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